JEDDAH, 28 November 2003 — Two businessmen from western Australia on their first visit to Saudi Arabia have re-evaluated their preconceptions about the Kingdom. They arrived amid the storms of the first day of the Eid celebrations.
“We should have guessed it was going to be different,” said Tony Watkins, one of the two and a geologist. “First we encountered floods in the desert, then we find all the businesses are shut.” They admit to having been warned in advance that this was to be expected — but decided to come anyway.
“I’m glad we did, though,” said Matt Kelly. “Had we gone straight into business, I think we would have missed the culture that’s so important in business relations.”
For the time being, the two have set aside business objectives and involved themselves in discovering more of the city and the festivities. “It’s totally different from what we were led to believe by the press and media in Australia,” said Watkins. “Terrorists on every street corner and people scowling at you, that is portrayed as the norm.”
After a morning in Balad casting a professional eye over the coral block structure of the old buildings and a tour of the business district, they feel they have a better understanding of the potentials and realities of the social fabric of the city.
“Clearly there is a solid base for business here, and from the way the old buildings were constructed, there has been for millennia,” said Watkins. “But equally there is a wide variety of social strata. The synergy of the two indicates that there is a potential for mutual business here.”
Widely traveled in some of the wilder parts of the world from Central Asia to Central Africa, Kelly and Watkins reflected on their experience so far.
“There are many places I can think of even in the so-called First World where I would have received a very different first impression,” said Watkins. “Wandering through the alleys of old Jeddah was like walking through a time warp. People looked — even stared — but smiled. An odd, but very telling experience.”
After a couple of evenings on the Corniche, Kelly summed up his reaction. “These are just people having fun. It’s normal families enjoying themselves without any of the oppressive threat of disruption we so often get in street parties, with people getting out of control from overindulgence in festive fluids. We’ll start business after Eid much better informed.”
